"JEFFREY" is a charming, proudly old-fashioned screwball comedy - the kind your parents used to love - that concerns a handsome young man who decides he's no longer going to have sex, particularly with other men.

It's a throwback to those zany Preston Sturges-directed movies of the '40s, like "The Lady Eve" or "The Palm Beach Story," or those underrated Doris Day vehicles of the '50s, the sort that makes you laugh out loud at just how goofy it can get. Writer Paul Rudnick's screen adaptation of his own Off-Broadway hit has all the sweetness of traditional Hollywood - romance, rapid pacing, stars, sex appeal, punch lines for days, even cute choreography and a touch of tragedy - without the usual bitter aftertaste. You won't even notice that "Jeffrey" is good for you.

This Orion-distributed independent production is among the best mainstream American films that focus on gay characters. It's not the deepest or the artiest: There are a couple of night scenes that are lit in such a way as to let you know that the outdoor action has suddenly shifted to an indoor set, a money-saving device also reminiscent of classic Hollywood. But "Jeffrey" is certainly one of the year's funniest, best-acted and well-written comedies, regardless of the sexual orientation of its characters. And it even has something worthwhile to say.

The plot concerns the title character (Steven Weber), a 30-ish New York actor / waiter fed up with safe sex who decides that no sex is the only answer. He directs all his pent-up energy into the gym, where he instantly meets Steve (Michael T. Weiss), a hunky butch type who makes his amorous intentions hard to ignore. This sets Jeffrey into a tizzy, and he calls on his wiser, stable best friend, Sterling (Patrick Stewart), a successful interior decorator. Jeffrey at first resists the attempts of Sterling and his "Cats" dancer boyfriend, Darius (Bryan Batt), to push him into Steve's arms, but ultimately can't resist - until Steve tells him he's HIV positive. Jeffrey doesn't want to appear impolite, so for months he waffles between flirting with and running away from Steve, who remains attracted but hurt. Friendly advice, a 12-step group for sexual compulsives, consultation with Father Dan (Nathan Lane) and a lecture by bogus self-help guru Debra Moorhouse (Sigourney Weaver) confuse Jeffrey further. Only when disaster strikes does the anti-hero come to his senses.

The plot is simple while the words and acting are full of complexities. Weber (known to TV watchers as hyper-straight pilot Brian Hackett in "Wings" ) and Weiss flesh out their roles with the requisite muscles and smiles, but Stewart and the actors in smaller roles (particularly Weaver, Lane, Kathy Najimy, Olympia Dukakis, and Peter Maloney and Debra Monk as Jeffrey's mom and dad) carry the film from inspired gag to emotional turmoil and back again, over and over.

Rudnick (whose mainstream credentials include the screenplay of "Addams Family Values" and writing the Libby Gelman-Waxner column for Premiere) is a master at gags, and the way the cast handles them makes the film a major improvement over the play. One unbelievably perfect bit after the first kiss proves this in about 10 seconds.

Stewart's Sterling is a true delight. He takes plenty of stereotypical gay mannerisms - razor-sharp wit, insinuating speech patterns, flawless fashion sense - and backs them up with the spiritual strength and wisdom of someone who truly understands what it means to be a man: He embraces the cliches without allowing himself to be defined by them. That also holds true of the film. Because it offers laughs, archetypal characters and conventional structure, "Jeffrey" is able to push buttons that more adventurous art can't reach. Your mom and dad might be shocked, but there's enough delirious farce to disarm the Pentagon.

That also holds true of the film. Because it offers laughs, archetypal characters and conventional structure, "Jeffrey" is able to push buttons that more adventurous art can't reach. Your mom and dad might be shocked, but there's enough delirious farce to disarm the Pentagon.

Movie Review "Jeffrey' * CAST Steven Weber, Patrick Stewart, Michael T. Weiss, Bryan Batt * DIRECTOR Christopher Ashley * WRITER Paul Rudnick * RATED R * THEATER Lumiere * EVALUATION ***1/4